Up In Smoke
by Mr. Freeman
Summary: What started as a terrible week turned into a journey for preteen Arthur Read as he struggles against his new addiction and tries to outwit smoke spirits and mysterious robed figures who stalks him wherever he goes.
1. Prologue

_Fanfiction Warning: This story contains Violence, Blood, Sexual Themes and Use of Drugs, Alcohol and Tobacco and has been rated T for Teen for the safety of the children._

_All Rights Go To Their Rightful Owners._

_Reader Discretion Is Advised._

_Turlough Freeman presents: Up In Smoke: A Preteen Arthur fanfic story._ **Arthur and his friends are 11 years old in this story except Binky and the tough customers (Or tough consumers or whatever you called them) who are 12. D.W. and her friends however are 7 (Or was it 8?) in this story as well.**

_Prologue..._

A preteen Arthur Read (Arthur and his friends are 11 years old in this story, while Binky and the tough customers are 12.) is in the family car with his mom. She is taking him to his appointment with Dr. Marty Coughman, Elwood City's best youth therapist. At Coughman's office, the middle aged rat therapist makes himself a glass of liquor. He takes his glass and goes to his desk.

Back at the car, Arthur stares at the window, lost in his thoughts. _"__How did it all go so wrong?" _he thought to himself. He begins to hear the voices of his teachers scolding him for not finishing his homework. He then sees a vision of him in the principal's office...

"Maybe staying after school for a week will help you catch up as you learn to make more progress on your schoolwork, and remind you not to fall behind and to stay focused." Said Mrs. Hopper, the female rabbit middle school principal.

Arthur then remembers being yelled at by Francine for missing out on a baseball game they played at another town while he was in detention. And they lost because of him. She and Arthur's friends were so mad at Arthur, they wouldn't want to talk to him or be near him.

Even worse, Arthur parents assigned him to help around the house as punishment when they received the call from his school principal. But at least, they did not ground him. What really disturbs him is that now he has to watch over his two sisters while their parents were at work. But at least their grandmother Thora was there to take care of them when their parents were out of town on business.

"Arthur... Arthur." Said Mrs. Read.

Arthur looks at his mother and said...

"Yes?"

"We're here. You better hurry." Said Mrs. Read.

"Oh, okay thanks." Said Arthur. He gets out of the car and closes the door.

"Give me a call when you're done." Said Mrs. Read.

"I will." Said Arthur.

The car drives away and Arthur goes into the building.

**Title Card: Up In Smoke**

At Dr. Coughman's office, The shrink hears a buzz on his intercom.

"Dr. Coughman, Your 4:00 is here, a Mr. Arthur Read." Said his secretary.

"Just in time." Said Dr. Coughman. He pushs the button on the intercom and said.. "Very good. Send him in."

A few seconds later, Arthur enters the office.

"Please to meet you, Arthur." Said Dr. Coughman. He and Arthur shook hands. Arthur went to sit on the couch.

**_Up next: Therapy Session 1: Motive_**


	2. Therapy Session 1: Motive

_Therapy Session 1: Motive..._

"I like to thank you for coming, Arthur.' Said Dr. Coughman. "Your presence here is your first step toward the road of recovery and redemption. I read your profile, and i must say, that's quite a lot of bad business you went through. So here's what we'll do: we skip all the notes, drugs and whatnot and go back to the time where everything went wrong. See if we can dig out the bad seed in your soul."

Dr. Coughman sits down on his chair.

"The first thing i want to know is: What is the motive for your descension toward darkness?" Dr. Coughman Asked. "Your invitation to corruption? On the table is a form i made and dubbed "The Motivation For One's Downfall". I want you to answer the questions i provided. Once your finished, i will analyze your answers and determine the motive of your "Downfall"."

_"Questions for "The Motivation For One's Downfall":_

**1. I always submit to peer pressure: True or False?**

**2. I couldn't refuse a dare: True or False?**

**3. I hated school: True or False?**

**4. I argue with my family and friends: True or False?**

**5. I enjoy picking a fight: True or False?**

**6. I long desire to be free: True or False?**

**7. I smoke cigarettes to cope with my life: True or False?**

**8. I'm a drug user: True or False?**

**9. I drown my misery and sorrow with alcohol: True or False?**

**10. I cheated on my girlfriend/boyfriend: True or False?**

**11. I couldn't stop thinking about sex: True or False?**

_"Arthur's answers: (Picked by me)_

**_1: True_  
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**_2: True_**

**_3: False_**

**_4: False_**

**_5: False_**

**_6: False_**

**_7: True_**

**_8: False_**

**_9: False_**

**_10: False_**

**_11: False_**

"Are you finished?" Asked Dr. Coughman.

Arthur nodded yes. Dr. Coughman takes the form, stands up and paces back and forth examining it.

"Hmm... Yes, i see it now." Said Dr. Coughman. "The motivation for your downfall is... Weakness: You, a cowardly weak-willed lowlife who couldn't stand up to his oppressors."

Dr. Coughman sits back down on his chair.

"Now then, let us begin." Said Dr. Coughman.

_**To Be Continued... Up next: Chapter 1**_


	3. Chapter 1

_Chapter 1..._

It was Saturday afternoon and at the Reads' residence, Arthur goes outside through the front door. Inside his mother said...

"Don't stay out too late, honey."

"Don't worry mom, i won't." Said Arthur. He closes the door. He proceeds to jog to the Sugar Bowl, where his friends were at. On the way, he comes across Brain who is on his way to work at his parents' ice cream shop.

"Hi, Brain." Arthur greeted.

"Oh, hi Arthur." Said The Brain. "Still feeling down from last week?"

Arthur nodded. But as they walked together, Arthur asked...

"What did i do wrong, Brain? How did last week end so tragically?"

"It wasn't your fault, Arthur." Said Brain. "Every now and then, people forget whenever they're too busy or stressed out. It happened to me sometimes."

"Well, yeah but.." Arthur said. "I had so much chores and babysitting to do, i kinda lost track. Man, i feel horrible. I should have been more focused."

"Don't blame yourself, you're not responsible for anything." Said Brain. "They're just disappointed that you weren't there for them when they needed you the most. They'll calm down and get over it eventually."

Arthur races off to the Sugar Bowl. He said to himself...

"I hope i'm not too late."

Upon reaching the Sugar bowl, Arthur sees Buster, Francine and Muffy coming out of the shop. As soon as they saw Arthur, they gave him a mean glare and walked away. Arthur followed them.

"Guys, please stop and listen to me." Arthur pleaded. "I'm sorry. I screwed everything up. Please, just stop and hear me out."

Muffy and Francine didn't respond, they just kept walking, but Buster stopped and looked at Arthur. Arthur sank his head down and walked away. Arthur wandered around the neighborhood, he came across Binky. Binky asked what's wrong, and Arthur said...

"Don't bother. You probably wouldn't help anyway."

A little while later, Arthur came across Molly's house, he sees Molly sitting on the grass. Arthur climbs over the fence and walked toward her.

"Hey, Molly." Arthur greeted her.

"Arthur? What are you doing here?" Asked Molly.

"Well, i happen to be in the neighborhood and thought i pay you a visit." Said Arthur.

"Well, you better leave." Said Molly.

"What? Why?" Asked Arthur.

The back door opened, coming outside is a teenage male cat (I'm talking about the teenage male cat who cursed at his mother in "Bleep") carrying a six pack of soda. He sees Arthur and said...

"Hey, who's the kid?"

"Relax, Henry. He's a friend of mine." Molly told the teenage boy. "Arthur, this is Henry Anderson. Henry, this is Arthur Read."

"Yeah well, whatever." Said Henry. He sits next to Molly and takes out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. He opens the pack, gives a cigarette to Molly, then takes one out for himself. Henry then lights his cigarette first with his lighter before lighting up Molly's.

"Wait, you smoke?" Arthur asked Molly. "How long have you been doing this?"

"Oh, a year now." Said Molly. "It helps keep the stress out."

Henry takes out a cigarette from his pack and offers it to Arthur...

"You want a try?"

Arthur felt uneasy, never in his life have he ever smoke. But he wanted something to forget the troubles he experienced last week. Feeling desperate, Arthur takes the cigarette and asked..

"Can you show me how it's done?"

Henry showed Arthur how to properly smoke a cigarette. He coughed on the first try, but he manages to get the hang of smoking. Molly was right about smoking easing the stress. Arthur hanged out with them for over an hour, talking about the terrible week he had. Molly soon sees her mother's car pulling up and signals Arthur and Henry. The three put out their cigarettes and hid behind the house and waited for her mother to go inside, once she did, Molly goes inside while Arthur and Henry slip out of the residence undetected. Arthur went on home. As soon as he reaches the door, he coughs. He needed to get rid of the smell, so he quietly went inside and sneaked toward the bathroom upstairs. In the kitchen, his father was cooking dinner when he soon smells the smoke and checks on the dinner for his family, luckily it wasn't burning, but by the time he turns around, Arthur was already upstairs.

In the bathroom, Arthur brushes his teeth and rinse it out with mouth wash. He then sprays deodorant all over himself. He looks at himself in the mirror and ponders about what he got himself into, a strange ghostly spirit soon appears behind him.

At dinnertime, Arthur can't help but think about what happened, but it was then that he begins to feel nervous. He soon begins to feel a light headache and his body was shaking a little bit.

"Arthur? Are you alright?" Asked Mrs. Read.

"Yes, mom." Said Arthur. "Just got a little headache."

After dinnertime, Arthur was in his bedroom cleaning up. (He catched up on his homework while he was in detention.) But as soon as he was finished, the headache came back, and this time the pain grew. He ignores it and lays down on his bed, drifting off to sleep.

Several hours later, Arthur is awakened to a tap at the window. Outside, Arthur sees Francine waving at him, he climbs out the window and down the drain pipe. As soon as he approaches Francine, she runs off, with Arthur in pursuit. Arthur follows Francine to Lakewood Elementary School where she unlocks the doors with a key. Arthur follows Francine inside only to find that she has vanished. Arthur searched the school for her, his old school brought back so many memories. Arthur eventually finds Francine in the Detention room, she was staring at the window. Arthur approaches her and touched her shoulder, but as he does Francine turns to Arthur and reveal her true form: a spirit made of smoke.

**Nicotine Spirits: These cigarette smoke spirits haunt Arthur, trying to convince him to smoke. They will pressure him by flying around him and at the right moment, lunged toward him. If Arthur is grabbed by these spirits, he must shake them off in order to break away from their grasp. More spirits will spawn the longer Arthur resist his nicotine addiction, but if he quits smoking, the spirits will be gone for good.**

Arthur backs away, but he runs out of the room as soon as the nicotine spirit charges at him. He heads toward the front doors, but the doors were locked, Arthur tries the other exits but they were locked as well. There was no way out, Arthur is trapped! Arthur turns around and sees the spirit lunging toward him. Arthur dodges and the spirit flies through the doors outside. Arthur takes a moment to gather his strength. He must find the keys to the front doors if he is to escape. Arthur searches the elementary school for the keys. Arthur went to Mr. Haney's office and on his desk lies a key ring containing the keys to the Janitor's office, the cafeteria, it's kitchen and every classroom in the school. In Mr. Ratburn's room, Arthur examines a photo on his desk. It was a picture of his old teacher, Arthur himself and all his friends. On the back of the photo is a key to the staff room which Arthur takes.

Arthur unlocks the staff room door with the key and enters the room. He searches the staff room and manages to find the key to the basement on a billboard along with a memo containg a combination to the Janitor's locker. Arthur went to the basement and unlocked the door with the key. Arthur goes down the basement and began exploring. Eventually, Arthur finds the Janitor's office and unlocks the door with a key on the key ring. Arthur goes to the locker and uses the combination to unlock the locker and collects a key ring containing the keys to all the exits of the elementary school.

Without warning, the nicotine spirit appears from the ceiling and lunges toward Arthur. Arthur ducks and races toward the front doors with the spirit in pursuit. Arthur reaches the front doors and quickly unlocks them. Outside, Arthur heads for home as fast as he can, once there, Arthur looks behind him and realizes that the spirit is gone. Arthur climbs up the drain pipe, but before he reaches the top, the nicotine spirit pops out of nowhere and roars at him, it scares Arthur to the point he loses his grip and falls to the ground screaming.

Arthur wakes up screaming. He breathes hardly and breathes a sigh of relief when he realizes it was all a dream. Arthur goes back to sleep. What he doesn't know is that his trip toward addiction and guilt would soon begin...

**To Be Continued... Up Next: Therapy Session 2: Resistance...**


	4. Therapy Session 2: Resistance

_Therapy session 2: Resistance..._

"Very informative, but very good indeed." Said Dr. Coughman as he makes himself a glass of liquor. "You know, addiction is never a good thing, whether it be the latest gadgets, sweets, junk food, liquor or worst of all, an illegal narcotic." Dr. Coughman paces back and forth while drinking from his glass. "Imagine yourself: a normal kid who longs to be in the popular crowd, only to discover that this crowd smokes cigarettes or drink alcohol or do drugs to maintain their cool status. They tempt you to do that stuff as a initiation to join their club, and once you're hooked, there is no turning back."

Dr. Coughman sits on his chair with his glass on hand.

"So, tell me: Are you always eager to try something new?" Dr. Coughman asked Arthur.

**I will choose for Arthur. If you want to take these sessions, go to my forum called "Up In Smoke sessions".**

Arthur nodded yes.

"Do you always think before you leap into action?"

Arthur nodded yes.

"Once you had a taste, would you want more?"

Arthur nodded yes.

"Well, that figures." Said Dr. Coughman. "Okay, let's test out your willpower, or in layman's terms, Resistance. On the table is a scale and weights with the names of substances. I want you to show me which substance you'll most likely resist and which substance you'll no doubt submit to. The substances you resist go on the left scale and the substances you submit to go on the right scale."

_(Be advised, the two scales each can hold up up to four weights.)_

**Substances:**

**Tobacco**

**Alcohol**

**Porn**

**Junk Food**

**Toys**

**TV**

**Movies**

**Music**

**Internet**

**Gadgets**

**Games**

**Marijuana**

**Cocaine**

**Morphine**

**Painkillers**

**Crack**

**Meth**

**Sex**

**Abuse**

_Arthur's resistance:_

**Marijuana**

**Cocaine**

**Abuse**

_Arthur's Submission:_

**Tobacco**

**Internet**

"Done?" Ask Dr. Coughman.

Arthur nodded yes.

"Nothing like having a good smoke while chatting with friends online." Said Dr. Coughman. "Something most kids would do nowadays. Anyway, please continue with your story."

**Up next: Chapter 2...**


	5. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2..._

Arthur tossed and turned on his bed, his craving for nicotine continues to grow. Nicotine spirits circle around him, torturing his mind. One of the spirits descends close to him and touches him. Arthur wakes up with a scream. He looks at the morning sky outside the window before going to the bathroom to wash up. Arthur gets dressed, once finished, he goes downstairs to get a drink. As soon as Arthur reached the kitchen, his headache struck again. He ignores it and goes to the fridge for a drink. In the middle of his drink, the craving for nicotine grew strong and the headache became ever more severe. Arthur couldn't take the pain or the craving any longer, Arthur puts down his cup on the table. rushes out of the house and raced toward Molly's house on his bicycle.

Arthur hastily knocks on Molly's door. Answering the door was Molly's mom Mrs. MacDonald.

"Hi, Mrs. MacDonald." Arthur greeted. "Is Molly home? I need to talk to her."

Mrs. MacDonald leads Arthur to Molly's room where she told Molly that she had a visitor before going to the kitchen. Arthur walks in and said...

"You got to help me, Molly." Arthur pleaded. "I can't get this craving out of my mind. I need a smoke now."

"Well i'm sorry, i can't." Said Molly. "Henry was only kind enough to give us just one smoke, but now..."

"Ohh... I'm desperate." Moaned Arthur as he rubs his forehead. "I really need a smoke."

"So do i." Said Molly. "But Henry did say we can always do some work at his mom's smoke shop if we ever need a smoke."

"Smoke shop?" Asked Arthur.

"Yeah, it's just across Mill Creek Mall." Said Molly. "Come on, i'll show you."

Molly and Arthur rode their bikes to the the smoke shop called "Anderson's Smoke Shop" just across Mill Creek Mall which is owned by Mrs. Sarah Anderson, Henry's mom. they went to the back of the smoke shop where there's a door and knocked on it. The door's peephole opened and a pair of eyes saw Arthur and Molly. a familiar voice said...

"Oh, it's you two." The voice belonged to Henry.

"Yeah yeah. Listen, We need a smoke. You got any work for us?" Molly asked.

"Yeah, i got a lot of orders to deliver, both mine and my mom's customers." Said Henry. "One of you need to go to my mom and ask her to fill in for me. I got a lot of tobacco products to make."

"I'll do it." Said Arthur.

"All right, see you later." Said Molly.

_"Henry has his own customers? I wonder why?" _Arthur thought to himself.

Molly went inside the back room while Arthur goes inside the shop through the front door. The smoke shop had a lot of stuff to sell: cigarettes, cigars, tobacco pipes (Including pipe cleaners and matches). alcohol, energy drinks, sodas, and scratch off and lottery tickets. Mrs. Anderson was busy stocking the cigarette shelves behind the counter.

"Um, excuse me. Mrs. Anderson?" Arthur call to Mrs. Anderson.

"Yes? Can i help you?" Asked Mrs. Anderson while she continues stocking.

"I like to fill in for Henry today. He told me that he's really busy today." Said Arthur.

Mrs. Anderson stops stocking and looks at Arthur.

"Hmph, figures. But i got to get these packages delivered today." Said Mrs. Anderson. "Wait here, i'll get the packages."

A lil while later, Mrs. Anderson comes back with a mailbag full of packages.

"Here you go, now make haste. My customers don't like to be kept waiting." Said Mrs. Anderson as he gives the mailbag to Arthur. After that, she goes back to work.

Arthur goes to work on delivering the packages to Mrs. Anderson's customers. His first stop was Jim's Drugstore. Arthur delivers Mr. Gage's package and told him that he is covering for Henry, the smoke shop's courier.

"At least Mrs. Anderson hasn't forgotten about me. Thanks for bringing my order to me." Said Mr. Gage, the drugstore's owner.

"You're welcome. Now i got to hurry and get the rest of the packages delivered." Said Arthur as he walks out of the drugstore.

Arthur continues on delivering the packages to Mrs. Anderson's customers. Most of her customers were familiar faces, one customer was his old grade school teacher, Mr. Ratburn, and another was his old principal, Mr. Haney. Other customers were Miss. Tingly, Miss. Sweetwater, and Mr. Marco.

Arthur soon arrive at Binky's house and knocks on the door, Mrs. Barnes answers.

"Hello Mrs. Barnes." Said Arthur.

"Oh hello, Arthur." Mrs. Barnes greeted.

"I have a package for Mr. Barnes, It's an order from Mrs. Anderson." Arthur explained.

"Oh, okay. He's not here right now, but i'll make sure he gets it." Said Mrs. Barnes as she takes the package. "Give Mrs. Anderson our thanks."

"I will. Thanks." Arthur said as he leaves. From the living room window, Binky sees Arthur riding away on his bike.

Arthur returns to the smoke shop after delivering the packages. Mrs. Anderson was on the phone talking to her customer.

"Yes, i see." Said Mrs. Anderson. She looks at Arthur and told her customer.. "Okay, I'll have my courier delivered it to you today. Okay, thank you and have a nice day."

Mrs. Anderson hangs up the phone and said to Arthur...

"Perfect timing. Mr. Crosswire has just ordered a big amount of cigars for his clients. Could you delivered them to his estate? I'll make it worth your while."

_"Muffy's dad is buying cigars now? What have i gotten myself into?" _Arthur thought to himself. "Sure, i'll take them to him straight away."

Outside of the smoke shop, Molly meets up with Arthur.

"Hey, Arthur." Molly greeted. "I'm going to the tool shed by the underpass for a smoke, you wanna come?"

"I'll have to do it tomorrow. I got to take this big order of cigars to Muffy's dad." Said Arthur.

"Alright, cool. See you tomorrow." Molly said as she takes off.

Arthur arrives at the Crosswire Estate. He rings the doorbell, but instead of a bell, he hears a buzzer sound.

"Hello? Who is it?" Asked Mr. Crosswire.

"I'm a courier from Mrs. Anderson's smoke shop." Arthur said to the intercom. "I have the cigars you ordered."

"Ah yes, Just in time. Please come in." Mr. Crosswire said.

Arthur goes in the mansion and meets up with Muffy's dad in his office.

"Oh hello, Arthur." Mr. Crosswire greeted. "Are you delivering packages for Mrs. Anderson now?"

"Um, not really. I'm filling in for her son, Henry." Said Arthur as he give Mr. Crosswire the cigars he ordered.

"Oh, i see. Well no matter, thanks for your help." Said Mr. Crosswire.

"Well, i better see if Mrs. Anderson has any more packages needed to deliver. See you soon." Said Arthur.

"Okay, take care now."

Outside of the mansion, Arthur was preparing to leave when he sees Muffy arriving home with Francine. He takes cover in one of the small trees placed near the front doors. As soon as the girls went into the mansion, Arthur races to his bike and sped away before the girls notice he was there.

After getting his smokes, lighter, and portable ashtray (As well as a few bucks from Mrs. Anderson for delivering Mr. Crosswire;s cigars), Arthur went straight home. Before dinnertime, Arthur went out to the backyard. As soon as he sees no one watching, Arthur lights up a cigarette to finally appease his craving that has been disturbing him yesterday and all day today. But while he smokes, Arthur ponders about the many questions that now plagues him: _Is smoking a terrible thing? If it is, how can i break free? Who will help me end this new addiction i caught? Will my friends ever forgive me for last week?..._

**To Be Continued... Up Next: Therapy Session 3: Fear...**


	6. Therapy Session 3: Fear

_Therapy Session 3: Fear..._

Dr. Coughman was pacing back and forth in his office while in a session with Arthur.

"Well..." Dr. Coughman. "This is quite enlightening. Delivering all those tobacco products to the many people of this city, people you knew too well. That's quite a risk you took. Of course, mostly everyone's got to take a big gamble to acquire what they need, whether it's legal or not. But the bad things we all done, they will always come back to haunt us, no matter how long it takes, could be today, could be weeks, months, years, but the guilt will catch us eventually, and that's where will we have to pay for our crimes, hard labor, community service, the works. I know i paid my debt to society, a long time ago, but i rather not talk about it."

Dr. Coughman goes back to sit on his chair.

"You're afraid, are you?" Asked Dr. Coughman. "I can sense it inside you. It's okay, you're not the only one who is scared, We all are, of everything. I'm trying to help you here. Before you say anything, everything you shared with me will not leave this office, you have my word. So tell me: Are you afraid of getting caught?"

**Again, i will choose for Arthur.**

Arthur nodded no.

"Do you attempt to cover up your tracks?"

Arthur nodded no.

"Will you accept punishment for your misdeeds?"

Arthur nodded yes.

"A real gentleman, I like it." Dr. Coughman said with approval. "Now then, it's time to show me what you fear the most. On the table is a deck of cards, each of them containing a punishment deemed most fearable. I want you to put four cards on the center of the table in a vertical line. Up: Most Fearful, Down: Least Fearful.

**Here are the punishments:**

**Spanking**

**Permanent Grounding**

**Detention**

**Community Service**

**Boarding School**

**Military School**

**House Arrest**

**Jail**

**Probation**

**Foster Home**

**Orphanage**

**Humiliation**

**Homeless**

_Arthur's most feared punishments:_

**Military School**

**Jail**

**Community Service**

**Permanent Grounding**

"Done?" Asked Dr. Coughman.

Arthur nodded yes.

"Yes, Military school can bring fear to a child, with it's tough as nails cadets and loud and proud drill sergeants, but it changes you for the good of society." Dr. Coughman said with comfort. "Come on, don't be afraid. Let's open the closet and get those nasty skeletons out, shall we?"

**To Be Continued... Up Next: Chapter 3...**


	7. Chapter 3

_Chapter 3..._

On monday morning at school, Arthur was at his locker getting supplies for his class. He felt disturbed, he can't stop thinking about he did over the weekend. But while he ponders, a hand suddenly touches Arthur's shoulder which caught the aardvark by surprise and made him drop his supplies.

"Oh, sorry Arthur." Buster apologized.

Arthur turns around and sees his best friend in front of him. He sighs in relief, and goes to pick up his supplies while Buster helped him. As soon as they're done, Arthur said...

"You're still mad about last week?"

"Not anymore." Said Buster. He points to Muffy and Francine. "But Francine and Muffy, they still need time to calm down if you get my meaning."

Arthur rubs his forehead, he felt terrible, from the nicotine addiction he caught and for the many mistakes he made on that fateful week.

"Anyhow, i wanted to apologize for last week." Said Buster.

"No, it's me who should apologize. I screwed up and let everyone down." Said Arthur.

Buster pats on Arthur's shoulder. The bell rings and everyone has gone to class.

In Dr Goldberg's math class, while focusing on the rabbit math teacher's lesson, Arthur spots a mysterious robed figure standing in the corner near the chalkboard. It was standing there, glaring at Arthur. Arthur ignored it and faced the teacher, but shortly after, he can hear chanting in a foreign language. Arthur gazes at the robed figure again, time it's not the only one chanting. Arthur looks around the classroom, spotting three more robed figures, each standing in a corner, chanting in a foreign language. Arthur couldn't stand the chanting any longer, as soon as the bell rings, Arthur races out of the classroom leaving Dr. Goldberg and the other students pondering.

**Robe: These mysterious robed figures represents a person's bad deeds. Their stalking methods and chanting in a foreign language can drive even the most horrible man insane. The more bad deeds Arthur does, the more of these robed entities he will encounter. They won't attack unless provoked, but in combat they are powerful even in greater numbers, their strength comes from the bad deeds of their prey. Once defeated, their bodies will disappear, leaving their robes behind, but after a period of time, they will come back. How fast they respawn depends on Arthur's karmic balance.**

In the boys' bathroom, Arthur washes his face. As soon as he dries off his face, he sees another robed figure in the mirror. He turns around only to see nothing, it was gone.

The rest of the school day wasn't easy for Arthur, but he pulled through in the end, but he still had detention from the week that drove him to smoke. Joining him in detention was Francine and Slink. All detention students were instructed to study and work on any homework they have.

As soon as Mrs Franks, the fox detention supervisor steps outside to do something, Arthur tries to get Francine's attention...

"Psst, hey Francine."

Francine growls at Arthur and goes back to her work. Arthur attempts to try again, but he soon hears Mrs. Franks coming back into the classroom and goes back to his homework and his studies.

At the end of detention, Arthur heads for home in time for dinner. After dinner, Arthur goes to the backyard for a smoke, as soon as he sees that no one is watching, Arthur lights up his cigarette. But a short time later and without warning, Arthur can hear his sister DW intimidating a fire truck siren, he quickly put out his cigarette and put it in his mobile ashtray just in time to be doused by a bucket full of water.

"AH! DW!" Arthur shouted.

"You better thank me, you were on fire and i had to put you out." DW explained.

"But i wasn't on fire. I was just uh, practicing a magic trick. Yeah, a magic trick." Arthur lied.

"Really? Can i see it?" Asked DW.

"You already ruined it, thank you very much. Now i have to go and dry off." Said Arthur as he goes off to his room to change into his pajamas since it was almost time for bed.

Arthur paces back and forth in his bedroom, he knows that his sister DW nearly caught him smoking, it filled him with dread. He had so many questions in his mind, he couldn't even think straight. Arthur decides to go to sleep to clear up everything.

Several hours of sleep later, Arthur wakes up in a cell of a terrifying dungeon, he wondered how he ended up here. Somewhere on the outside, a mysterious voice began calling Arthur's name, then drops a key to his cell afterward. Arthur uses the key to escape from his cell and search for a way out while avoiding contact with the robes patrolling the halls of the dungeon. While exploring for a exit, Arthur finds himself in a room containing hundreds of scales laying on shelves, tables and desks. No one knows what these scales does but soon enough, Arthur finds a scale with his name on it, Each of the scales is etched with a strange word. Arthur knows nothing about the supernatural, but he decides to take the scale with him.

Without warning a robed figure enters the room and spots Arthur. It shouted at a foreign language and rushes toward him. Arthur dodged out of the way and ran out the door. The robes were alerted to Arthur's presence as he runs all over the dungeon searching for an exit, by the time he finds it, he soon finds himself surrounded by robes. They close in on Arthur, as soon as one of them grabs him, he wakes up from his dream.

Arthur looked around his room and breathed a sigh of relief, he lied back down on his bed, but soon spotted the scale he picked up from his dream lying on the table next to his alarm clock. The next day at school during lunch, Arthur showed Prunella the scale.

"And when i woke up, this was standing on my bedpost." Arthur explained.

"Hmm..." Prunella examines the balance. "Ah, i see now. This is a rare Karmic Balance. Most fortune tellers doesn't know this scale exists, but fortunately i do."

"What does it do?" Arthur asked.

"This scale measures how guilty or guiltless one is." Prunella explained. "Lying and Holding secrets will tilt the scale to the guilty side while fighting and being mean shifts it to the guiltless side."

Arthur pulls the Karmic Scale back to himself, but when he holds it, the scale moved a bit to the guilty side right in front of Prunella. Arthur gasped and moved his hand away from the scale, the scale returned back to normal. Before Prunella could say anything, Arthur said...

"No, i don't have a guilty secret. This thing is playing tricks on me, i just know it. I.. I have to go."

Arthur rushes out of the cafeteria with the scale. At his locker, Arthur puts away the scale from his dream and closes it. As soon as he turns around, he sees himself surrounded by robes, who are chanting the word "Amartolos". They close in on Arthur, but disappears when Mr. Black the english teacher approaches him.

"Ah, Arthur just the kid i was looking for. Could you come to my classroom please? I need a favor from your dad."

Arthur follows Mr. Black to his classroom. A few minutes later in art class, Arthur was working on his painting, to take his mind off what has been disturbing him in the past few days. He closes his eyes and begins to express his distress on the easel, when he opens his eyes he gasped at the images he has painted: Two nicotine spirits and three robes, the very creatures that haunts his dreams.

"Very intriguing, Mr. Read." Said Miss. Andrews, the aardvark art teacher. "Do tell me about them."

"They um, they..." Arthur whispers into his art teacher's ear.

"Oh, i see. Still, it's impressive work, Mr. Read." Said Miss. Andrews.

A short time later, the bell rings and everyone leaves the classroom, except for Arthur and Prunella who stayed behind to examine Arthur's creation. Arthur told Prunella about his latest dreams.

"I don't know who they are, but they won't stop torturing me." Arthur Explained.

"Hmm, i might investigate these disturbances of yours, for a price." Said Prunella.

"I don't know where i'll get the money from, but i know where to start." Said Arthur.

"Great, i'll call you when i found some answers." Said Prunella.

Before Prunella leaves, Arthur stopped her...

"Wait."

"I won't say anything, Arthur, if it makes you feel better." Said Prunella as she leaves.

"Thanks."

Meanwhile in detention, Arthur was studying when Mrs. Hopper comes in with a long yellow envelope, she walks to Arthur and said...

"Arthur, could you take this home to your mother please?" Said Mrs. Hopper as she placed the envelope on his desk. "I decided to lift your detention early so you can help the school on a few errands."

"Thanks, Mrs. Hopper. I promise to stay focused from now on." Said Arthur.

"Very good, Arthur. You may go home now." Said Mrs. Hopper. She pats her head and leaves the room, much to the disgust of the other students in detention.

Arthur rushes on home to deliver Mrs. Hopper's envelope to his mother and Mr. Black's letter to his dad. Having finished his tasks, Arthur told his parents he's going to the tree house to study. At the tree house, Arthur resumes his studies while he smokes a cigarette. A little while later, his eyelids are growing heavy, he begins to fall asleep and into another of his dreams. In his dream, Arthur is being chased by a angry mob of his own friends who discovered his nicotine addiction. They chased him to a old trailer underneath the highway. Arthur rushes into the trailer and locked the door.

"Arthur! Come on out, you smoking scumbag!" Francine yelled at the top of her lungs.

Arthur's friends attempts to break in the trailer.

"You open this door, Arthur!" Shouted Francine.

"I never wanted to smoke! You have to believe me!" Arthur pleaded. His friends continue banging on the door with Arthur pleading until they stop. He peeks out the window and saw one of his friends lighting up a canister full of gasoline, Arthur backs away while Binky breaks the window with a sledgehammer. Muffy gives the canister to Binky.

"Have a taste of your own medicine, chain smoker!" Shouted Binky as he tossed the canister inside the trailer. Soon enough the trailer catches fire and soon after Arthur too.

Arthur wakes up quickly to discover that the treehouse is on fire and his shirt is ablaze. He quickly takes his shirt off and looks outside to see his parents and his sisters and his neighbors along with a group of firemen holding on trampoline for Arthur.

"Jump! Jump!" Shouted one the firemen. Arthur obliges and landed safely on the trampoline. he rushes toward his parents and hugged them as the firemen works on putting out the fire. Arthur's relief soon turned to guilt as he realizes what he has done: He fail to put out his cigarette before he fell asleep. His eyes begin to fill with tears.

Arthur was quiet the next day in school. Word of the treehouse fire spread all over the school and most of Arthur's friends were discouraged that their most beloved hangout was burned to the ground. Arthur spent the school day avoiding his friends to avoid any confrontations. After school is over, instead of going home, he goes to Mrs. Anderson's smoke shop and browsed a while until Mrs. Anderson came into the shop through the back room.

"Arthur, Glad you came. Could you help me with something?" Asked Mrs. Anderson.

"Sure, why not. I needed to find something to do." Said Arthur.

"Great. Mr. Black just ordered a large amount of liquor for a party he's throwing at his house because he won first prize at a poker tournament in Vegas." Mrs. Anderson explained while feeling a bit thrilled. "Anyway, i need you go with my son to deliver the alcohol to his house. He's out in the back loading the liquor onto our delivery van. You should go help him."

Arthur went to delivery van out the back of the smoke shop and helped Henry load Mr. Black's order of alcohol onto the delivery van. When the last load of alcohol onto the van, they closed and locked the back doors and droved to Mr. Black's house. After they dropped off Mr. Black's liquor, they went back to the smoke shop and gotten their payment from Mrs. Anderson. Before Arthur could leave, Henry stopped him and said...

"Hold on. Before you go, i want to know if you want to help me with my deliveries. Molly just quitted a few days ago and i really need a courier.

"I'm a little down today, but i'll sleep on it and let you know."

"Alright, no problem." Said Henry. He took out a notebook and wrote down his number and given it to him. "Here's my number. Give me a ring if you finally decide to come work for me."

The sun was setting and at the Read home, Arthur was lying on his bed, fast asleep. The robes' chanting of "Armatolos" woke him up. Arthur gasped again when someone knocked on his door. He was panicking, fearing for his life as another knock on the door was heard. Arthur was paralyzed with fear and soon enough, the door begin to slowly open...

**To Be Continued... Up Next: Therapy Session 4: Trust...**

**BUT... Before i continue the story, i need to know one thing: Who will Arthur trust his secret to? Go to my profile (Mr. Freeman) and cast your vote.**


	8. Therapy Session 4: Trust

_Therapy Session 4: Trust..._

After a brief review on some documents, Dr. Coughman places them on his desk and goes back to his chair to talk to Arthur.

"Well, i'm surprised." Said Dr. Coughman. "I never expected you to get away with torching a tree house that has always been a part of yours and your friends' lives nor played a part of a celebration gone horribly wrong. But i'm getting ahead of myself. You know, keeping a secret is an easy task, but trusting a friend or a sibling with that secret, that's another story. In most cases, these people you trust, they cave in after a intense interrogation or used you for personal gain. But the real question is: Once the guilt catches up with them, will you ever forgive them?"

Arthur was overwhelmed with guilt, he couldn't answer.

"It's okay, you don't have to answer that." Said Dr. Coughman. "But tell me this: How far will you go to keep a secret? I'm going to give out some solutions, nod yes if you agree and shake no if you disagree. Ready?"

"Beg..."

Arthur agrees.

"Blackmail..."

Arthur disagrees.

"Intimidate..."

Arthur disagrees.

"Assault..."

Arthur disagrees.

"Humiliate..."

Arthur disagrees.

"And lastly, Murder..."

Arthur disagrees.

"A wise solution. Why resort to violence when you can listen to reason." Dr. Coughman said with confidence. "All right, enough chatter. Time to place your trust. On the table are photos of your friends. I want you to pick the one person you trust the most and place him or her in the center of the table."

**Arthur's Friends:**

**Buster**

**Francine **

**Sue Ellen**

**Muffy**

**Binky**

**Ladonna**

**Fern**

**George**

**Brain**

**Prunella**

_Arthur's most trustworthy friend is..._

**George**

"Finished?" Asked Dr. Coughman.

Arthur nodded yes. Dr. Coughman picked up the photo of George Lundgren and examined it.

"Hmm, George Lundgren." Dr. Coughman pondered. "Yes, the kid is innocent and somewhat good enough to be trusted, but have you double checked to be sure? Oh no, i'm not a man to judge, but there is always the one moment where the friend you trust your secret to betrays you. Let's go to that fateful day."

**To Be Continued... Up Next: Chapter 4...**

**Clearly i didn't get enough votes, so George will have to do since he got the most votes, two votes to be exact.**


	9. Chapter 4

_Chapter 4..._

In Arthur's bedroom, the door slowly opened while Arthur remained paralyzed with fear. Once the door was open, a strange shadow with antlers on his head stepped into the room and turned on the light switch to reveal himself as George Lundgren, one of Arthur's friends. Arthur calmly pulled himself together and said...

"George, you scared me."

"Oh.. I'm really sorry." Said George. He closes the door. "I wanted to check on you, the others are really worried about you."

"I..I don't know if i can ever face them." Said Arthur. "I wasn't there for them last week, and now i torched our treehouse. (sighs) I been nothing but a total screw up."

"Don't feel bad, Arthur." Said George. "It couldn't get any worse."

"Forget it, it's already worse now." Arthur said with discouragement. "I.. (Takes a deep breath) I been smoking."

"Sm-Smoking? You? When did this happen?" Asked George.

"At the end of that horrible week." Arthur told his friend. "I met this guy named Henry and he and Molly were smoking and he offered me a cigarette. I didn't want to at first, but i wanted to forget what i went through, so i tooked up smoking, and now i'm stuck with this addiction. I can't fight it, George. These cravings always come back no matter how hard i try."

After a brief slience, a speechless George rubs his neck and said...

"Well... I don't know what to say. This looks pretty serious indeed."

Arthur runs up to George, grabs him and begged...

"Please, George. You have to keep it a secret." Arthur pleaded. "If everyone finds out about this, there's no telling what will happen to me. My parents could ground me for the rest of my life, or worse, they could send me to military school. Or even more worse..."

"Come to your senses, Arthur! I won't say anything, now let me go!" George shouted, Arthur obeyed and calmed down. "Get on your computer, i have an idea that will surely keep your secret safe."

With Arthur's computer, Arthur and George created a Letter Of Confession indicating Arthur addiction to nicotine. As soon as it's printed out, George placed it inside a envelope, sealed it and wrote the name "Bastings" (the name of his detective character) on the front. George puts the letter in his pocket and speaks to Arthur...

"Arthur, i may ask you a favor about this."

"Which is?" Arthur asked.

"I know it will take a long time for someone to discover this letter." George explains. "But if that certain someone, especially Fern, uncovers it, i will have no choice but to turn you in. I want you to promise me.. that you'll tell the truth."

Arthur gasped and gulps. _Me tell the truth?! What kind of a favor is that?!_ he thought as he panics.

"I need your word on this, Arthur Read...or i won't help you at all." George seriously warned Arthur.

"B-But why, George? Why are you asking me this?" Arthur asked.

"Arthur, please understand that we all love and care about you. We are always willingly to help you in your time of need." George explained. "I know your mom and dad will punish you for smoking, but they will forgive you and give you their support in getting rid of your um, addiction. Now, are you going to promise me that you'll tell the truth or not?"

Arthur takes a breath and said...

"Okay, i promise."

Arthur looked at the scenery through the window, by the time he turned around, George was gone. In the middle of the night, Arthur woke up when the craving struck him. He opened the window and lights up a smoke. From behind, a voice said...

"Well, Well, Arthur Read. I don't know if you're either brave or stupid enough to trust your secret to Mr. Mooseface."

Arthur turned around a saw an teenage aardvark who looked like him. He was wearing a black t-shirt, black leather jeans, black boots and a gray football jacket with the name "Andrew" on the front like a name tag.

"I didn't have a choice, i couldn't take the pain of this guilt any longer, i want it to stop." Arthur asked as he continues with his smoke, he sniffs and begins to shed some tears.

"You big crybaby. I seen tougher girls who can hold their tongues longer than you. But still, the kid is right about someone uncovering your secret one day." Said Andrew. "But personally, i say his "Favor" is kinda dumb."

"What are you even saying?" Asked Arthur. "Is it because i'm a big dumb crybaby who's about to get punished because he could only a secret for a short time before the guilt kicks in?"

"That's right! We have a winner! (laughs) But seriously, I don't trust Big Horns Jr. or anyone else and i don't think you should either." Said Andrew. "Even if they did promise not to tell, they'll always tell anyway and end up getting you locked up for a long stretch. All work and no fun while being punished, that's enough to drive you nuts. But if you still have brains, you should find your "Letter Of Confession" and burn it before someone else finds it. Maybe then, you'll learn to keep your mouth shut. And try to man up while you're at it, will you? You really sicken me."

Arthur finishes his smoke, puts out his cigarette and placed in his mobile ashtray. He soon realizes that Andrew is gone, but it didn't matter to him, (he was a jerk), he went back to bed.

The next day while walking to school, Arthur is visited by a teenage angel who looked exactly like him. He introduce himself as Ark Redman. Beside his angel wings, he was wearing a white jacket, blue jeans and white shoes. He also appears to be in possession of a staff made of steel and is also a black belt in Hapkido. (Anyone remembered a sega game called Eternal Champions? There's a character named Xavier who's a master of Hapkido and fights with a staff. or was it a cane?)

"Don't listen to Andrew, Arthur. He's a jerk." Ark advised Arthur. "I believe you did the right thing."

"But i'm worried." Said Arthur. "I don't know if i will tell the truth, i'm scared. My mom and dad won't love me anymore if they find out i been smoking. Even my friends will ditch me if they find out."

"Preposterous." Said Ark. "They will never have the decency to get angry at you. Uh, i think."

Arthur said nothing, but in school at Arthur's locker...

"Listen, Arthur. You can't keep letting fear control you." Said Ark. "You're going to have to harness the strength to tell the truth one day. Your parents may punish you for smoking, but they'll forgive you, however with their help and the help of your friends, they can help you break away from your addiction and hopefully prevent you from relapsing in the future."

Arthur said nothing and rummage through his locker for supplies. By the time he finishes, Ark disappeared, but he did see Francine coming toward him.

"Hey, Arthur." Said Francine.

"Come to shout angry stuff at me, have you?" Arthur sarcastically asked.

"N-No, nothing like that." Said Francine. "I wanted to apologize.. for everything."

"I understand, Francine." Said Francine. "But i still feel horrible, I should have stayed more focused last week."

"It's okay, Arthur. Let's just forget about it and move on." Said Francine.

"(Sighs) I wish i could, but i wish i never gotten involved in..." Arthur stopped.

"Involved in what?" Francine asked.

"Nothing, nothing. Just thinking to myself, really." Arthur lied.

"Oh, okay. Nothing wrong with that." Said Francine.

The school bell rings.

"Okay well, see you later." Said Francine as she hurries off to class.

Arthur breathes a sigh of relief, quickly grabs his supplies, closes the locker door and rushes off to class.

A few hours later at lunchtime, Arthur once again ponders about his latest horrible deed: Smoking. But while he ponders, several students were talking about the latest events in Elwood City...

"Mrs. Black got arrested. She drank too much at that party in Mr. Black's house..." On kid gossiped.

"My dad caught some older kids smoking at the house from across the street..." Another kid said.

"Ohh...It's never the same without our treehouse." Said Buster.

"Stop complaining, Buster. Our parents did agree to help rebuild it." Said Francine.

It wasn't long before...

"Arthur Read."

Arthur looked behind him and saw Mrs. Hopper, the middle school principal accompanied by two robes.

"Come into my office. Your parents and i need to talk to you." She said.

George walked beside him and said...

"I had no choice. My mom found the letter while she was folding my clothes. I'm sorry."

George walked away in shame and the two robes walked close to Arthur and grabbed him. Arthur wakes up from his dream screaming while he fell off his seat. Several students were laughing. Buster helped Arthur up, but Arthur ran out the cafeteria in fear.

After school at Arthur's house, Arthur was finishing up on his homework when he gets a call from his cell phone.

"Arthur, It's Buster. We need to talk." Said Buster.

"Talk about what?" Arthur asked.

"You of course. You're really worrying me." Said Buster. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, Buster. I'm just under a lot of pressure, that's all." Said Arthur.

"You really need to let go of that horrible week and move on, Arthur. Everyone already has." Said Buster. "Look, just take it easy, ok?"

"(Sighs) Okay, i will. I gotta go, I need finish this homework, Bye." Said Arthur as he hangs up. After pondering for a bit, he remembers Henry's number and dials it on his cell phone.

"Yeah?" Asked Henry.

"It's Arthur. I decided to come work for you." Said Arthur.

"Great. Be at the smoke shop tomorrow, we got a lot of orders to deliver." Said Henry.

After finishing his homework, Arthur hurries to Mill Creek Mall, at a shop called "Costumes and Uniforms", Arthur buys a mailman's uniform and a pair of joke eyeglasses.

Arthur was already asleep around bedtime, his mind was set on what he was about to do...

**To Be Continued... Up Next: Chapter 5...**


	10. Chapter 5

_Chapter 5..._

It was soon the beginning of the weekend. After waking up, Arthur changed into his disguise and went downstairs for breakfast. As soon as he entered the living room, his family looked at him. DW and Kate began to laugh.

"Uh, Arthur? Why are you..?" Asked Mr. Read.

"I uh, I felt like being a bit goofy today." Arthur lied.

"Thanks, Arthur. Now i really feel better." Said Kate.

Arthur takes off his joke glasses and puts on his eyeglasses before he joins his family at breakfast. The family was quiet for a bit, but Mrs. Read asked Arthur...

"Um, Arthur? Tell me why are you really dressed up like that?" Mrs. Read asked about Arthur's disguise.

"Well, i needed to make some money for myself, so i was planning to find a job." Arthur explained.

"Nothing wrong with that, but why are you looking for a job dressed like that?" Asked Mr. Read.

"I don't want my friends to see that i have taken a job, they would chew my ears off for ignoring them." Arthur explained.

"Oh, They won't, I'm sure they'll understand." Said Mr. Read.

After breakfast, Arthur was about to leave for the smoke shop when his mom stopped to ask him something.

"Wait, Arthur." Mrs. Read halted her son. "You're not going to work at that smoke shop across Mill Creek Mall, are you?"

"N-No, it's nothing like that, i swear." Said Arthur.

"Good, very good." Said Mrs. Read. "I don't want that awful Anderson woman get you involved in her sickly schemes."

"I won't, mom. I promise." Arthur swore to his mother. "Listen, i got to go."

"Okay, go ahead. And remember: Stay away from that smoke shop." Mrs. Read warned her son. "If i even hear you're working for that wretch, you'll know how much trouble you're really in."

Arthur gulps, nervously nods and leaves the house, changes back to his joke glasses and head toward the smoke shop. He never wanted to disobey, but he told Henry that he'll work for him and he's intended to keep his promise. Once there, Arthur went to work delivering packages to Henry's customers. After delivering all the packages and gotten his payment from Henry, he went into the smoke shop to buy an energy drink, but he never expected a fateful encounter with Ryan Turner, Elwood City's Chief of Police, who happens to be talking with Mrs. Anderson.

"We can't turn back now." Said Chief Turner. "We're so close to the mayor's office, and i can't let all my work go to waste."

"Please, Ryan. I can't take the pressure anymore, they're getting really serious this time." Mrs. Anderson pleaded. "They're talking about bringing in a professional, someone you can't even pay off. We should just drop everything and get out of this town."

"But where would we go?" Asked Chief Turner. "Mr Freeman already has a bounty on my head and the FBI are after me. What if you die because of me? I can't risk losing you, You and Henry are all i have."

"I'm.. I'm sorry, you're right." Said Mrs. Anderson. "But i don't know what to do, I can't risk losing Henry and i don't know have anyone else to trust with these deliveries."

Mrs. Anderson and Chief Turner soon have their eyes on Arthur who places a can of energy drink on the counter.

"Hmm.. What about him?" Asked Chief Turner.

Some time later, Chief Turner is driving Arthur home while he talks to him about his offer.

"Here's the deal, Arthur. You help us with the campaign, and we'll take good care of you." Said Chief Turner. "You want a big paycheck? Done. You don't want to do any homework? I'll pull some strings. You want the best stuff in town? Not a problem..."

"It's a great offer, Mr. Turner, but i'm worried." Said Arthur. "What if someone finds out what i'm doing? I'll be in so much trouble."

"You leave that to me." Said Chief Turner. "I got a good detective that will keep you out of harm's way."

And so Arthur spent the weekend, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon after school working at the smoke shop delivering tobacco products and other stuff to Mrs. Anderson's customers. But on Thursday morning at school, in Miss. Smith's Home Economics class...

"Uh, Arthur? Arthur?" Buster quietly called out to his friend.

"Yeah?" Arthur asked.

"I tried to reach you, but you weren't there." Said Buster. "Where were you?"

"I..I had a lot a work to do." Said Arthur. "I'm sorry, Buster."

Before Buster could say anything, Mrs. Hopper enters the room and Arthur and Buster goes back to their schoolwork. Mrs. Hopper gives Miss. Smith a note then leaves the classroom.

"Come on, Arthur. There's something you're not telling me." Said Buster.

"It's only work, Buster. A kid's gotta keep his grades up, you know." Said Arthur.

"I understand that. But something is wrong, i can feel it." Said Buster. "Please, Arthur, Can't you at least...?"

"No! I didn't cause any trouble!" Arthur shouted. The whole class looked at him. "Sorry."

After lunch in Mr. Tanner's shop class, Arthur is busy constructing a wooden box, which will soon be used to store his cigarettes and lighter. But while he works, Buster is seen talking to George.

"Something's wrong, George. I'm worried about Arthur, He's not telling me something." Said Buster.

"Well, you can't blame Arthur for working too hard." Said George. "He didn't want to do a repeat of that horrible week he had."

"Maybe... But what if it's worse than that?" Asked Buster.

"That might be a good theory.. if we have proof, that is." Said George.

After school, Prunella calls Arthur over to her house. Arthur gives Prunella some money and soon the two friends looked into Prunella's crystal ball together. The crystal ball begins to show images of the robed figures that has been haunting Arthur's dreams.

"As you can see, Arthur. These robed figures you speak of are the entities of your terrible deeds." Said Prunella. "They plagued the minds of the guilty, tormenting their prey into confessing their crimes."

"What are they telling me? What is my crime?" Arthur asked.

The crystal soon shows images of the nicotine spirits.

"It seems these spirits carry the answer." Said Prunella. She asked the spirits... "Spirits of smoke and foul scents, reveal to us Arthur's greatest sin."

The crystal ball fills with smoke, then it begins to glow.

"What's going on?" Asked Arthur.

"Hmm... It seems that someone familiar to you is calling to us." Said Prunella.

The smoke inside the crystal ball disappears and the glow dims down. Ark Redman can now been seen inside the crystal ball.

"Arthur!" Shouted Ark.

"Ark! What are you doing in there? What is going on?" Arthur asked the guardian angel.

"I'll tell you what's going on, Arthur Read! You're entering into a world of trouble, courtesy of that corrupted police chief friend of yours!" Ark yelled at Arthur.

**To Be Continued... Up Next: Chapter 6...**


	11. Chapter 6

_Chapter 6..._

We find Ark Redman, Arthur's guardian angel communicating with Arthur through Prunella's crystal ball.

"What? What corrupted police chief?" Asked Arthur.

"Chief Ryan Turner." Said Ark. "He's plotting something terrible to Elwood City."

"What are you talking about?" Asked Arthur.

"Look, Listen to me, Arthur. You're putting the whole city in danger." Ark warns Arthur. "By working for Turner, you only have begun to fuel his campaign for the mayor's office. If he gets elected, there will be so much crime and death in the city, that no one will be safe."

"Yeah, yeah. a lot of deals go down and a few people died. Big deal." Said Andrew Reckless as he approached within sight of the crystal ball. "Besides, if you ask me, the town could use some action anyway, right?"

"Stay out of this, Andrew. You lead Arthur into enough trouble as it is." Ark barked at Andrew.

"Oh no, i only have just begun." Said Andrew. "As you can see, we just got ourselves into a score of a lifetime. Big money, no homework.. What more can a kid like Arthur asked for?"

"It's always the same with you, isn't it, Andrew?" Asked Ark. "Manipulating the minds of innocent kids into doing your bidding."

"Yep, that's me, Archie." Andrew taunted.

While Ark and Andrew argues on, The crystal ball images disappears. Prunella and Arthur were speechless, but after a while, Prunella said...

"Wow Arthur, Fate indeed does have a big plan for you."

Arthur said nothing and left the room.

"Arthur, wait!" Shouted Prunella.

Arthur left Prunella's house and walks on home. Suddenly, his cell phone rings and Arthur answers.

"Yes?" Asked Arthur.

"Arthur, it's Mrs. Anderson." Said Mrs. Anderson. "Listen, could you come by my shop and help out?"

"Why? What's up?" Arthur asked.

"Mr. Crosswire just ordered some alcohol and some cigars for a party he's throwing." Said Mrs. Anderson.

"Alright, i'll be right over." Said Arthur. He hangs up and hurries along to the smoke shop.

Arthur reaches the smoke shop and rushes inside. Yet, he didn't know that someone is following him and that someone is Buster, his best friend who is across the street taking pictures and writing down notes. Without warning, a car pulls up in front of him. The driver is a adult male cat wearing a detective uniform. He lowers the car window and said...

"You're not playing detective here, are you, kid?"

"No! No no, sir. I was just checking on my friend." Said Buster.

"Sure you are, kid. But you might want to leave the detective work to a professional." Said the detective. He takes his hand out and said... "Come on, give me your camera and notebook. I don't want to have to call your mother and tell her that you been interfering with police business."

"Y-Yes sir." Said buster as he did as he told. "I have a name, by the way. It's Buster."

"Buster, huh? I'm Detective Larry Turner of the Elwood City Police Department." Said Detective Turner.

"Anyway, i'm worried about my friend. He hasn't called or talked to me in a while and i'm very concerned." Said Buster. And i saw Arthur in the neighborhood, so i followed him here."

"Well Buster, You shouldn't worry about your friend nor following him. I'm keeping a good eye on him as well as my brother's girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?" Asked Buster.

"That Anderson woman working at that smoke shop there." Said Detective Turner.

Buster looked at the smoke shop across the street. He sees Arthur, Henry and Mrs. Anderson loading goods onto the store's delivery van.

"Well, okay. I just wanted to make sure Arthur's okay. I gotta go home now." Said Buster.

"Alright go ahead. Just remember: I'm watching you and anyone else who tries snooping around." Said Detective Turner.

And with that, Buster heads for home. The detective's cell phone rings and he answers.

"Yeah? Oh, hey Ryan..."

After all that has been done, the delivery van drops off Arthur at his house. After dinner, Arthur decides to have a smoke at the backyard. With the rest of the day nearly gone, Arthur and his family went to bed. Arthur however, soon finds himself in a dream where he finds himself in Elwood City in the middle of the night. The city has since fallen into ruin, buildings had graffiti on it and the streets were littered with the homeless and many other types of criminals. Arthur wandered the streets until he comes across his best friend Buster sitting on the sidewalk at the end of the street. He appears to be an adult now and has been drinking alcohol.

"Buster? Buster, is that you?" Asked Arthur as he comes close to his best friend.

Buster turns to look at Arthur, the shock at the sight of his best friend was enough to sober him up.

"Arthur? B-But that's impossible!" Said Buster. He stands up and backs away. "They said you were dead."

"Buster, what are you talking about?" Arthur asked.

"Go away! You're not real!" Buster shouted. He throws his beer bottle at Arthur and ran away.

"Wait! Buster, Wait!" Arthur shouted. He goes after Buster.

Arthur chased after Buster, but lost him sometime later and bumped into Andrew Reckless.

"How you doing, kid? Let's go for a walk." Said Andrew.

Moments later, they stopped by a diner for a few drinks and snacks.

"Isn't this great?" Asked Andrew. "A lot of action going on ever since Turner got elected mayor. Gangs spilling blood on the streets, Mobsters setting up shop, it never ends and i hope it doesn't."

"I don't understand." Said Arthur.

"Understand what?" Asked Andrew.

"Who are you? What really turned you into..Well, what you are now?" Asked Arthur.

"Heh, heh. Gee, Arthur, i thought you never ask." Said Andrew. "You wanna know more about me? No problem... I'm you, Arthur. My friends' abandoning me, my parents excessive punishments and the community shunning me drove me into burying my goody two shoes personality and become Andrew Reckless. Those Elwood City jerks can kiss Arthur Read goodbye and get a lifetime of pain and suffering from yours truly."

"But don't you ever miss your old friends or the love from your parents?" Arthur asked. "What about missing the very people who really care about you and support you when you needed it the most?"

"You wish. They kicked me to the curb years ago, but now i'm kicking back." Said Andrew. He looks around and said. "Actually, yes i do, a bit. So keep that to yourself or i'll beat it out of you!"

"Sure, no problem." Said Arthur. "I have to go."

Arthur leaves the diner, after walking for a bit, he feels two hands on his shoulder, he turns around and saw George and Fern wearing detective uniforms.

"I had a feeling you would come back to town after what you have done." Said George as he takes out his handcuffs and places them on Arthur's wrists.

"George, Fern, what is going on here?" Arthur asked.

"I think you know why. Thanks to that dirty cop who got elected, the whole city went downhill." Fern explained. "And if anyone here is to blame, it's you."

"If only you understood and helped us, Arthur." Said George. "This whole crime wave who never happened. Our friends wouldn't have moved out of here.. or died."

Fern and George takes Arthur to the Elwood City Police Station and booked him for causing the entire crime wave in Elwood City. As the aardvark sits in his cell, he soon gets an unexpected visitor. It was Ark.

**To Be Continued... Up Next: Therapy Session 5: Hate...**


	12. Therapy Session 5: Hate

_Therapy Session 5: Hate..._

Dr. Coughman sit silently on his chair, but he stood up and paced back and forth saying...

"You know, i bet you feel really ashamed for becoming a pawn for some scheme by a criminal claiming to be a police chief. And i also bet it would anger you if you knew the truth or if were just enjoying this deal you gotten, someone dug in and busted the whole thing wide open. But the real question is: Who is to really blame?"

Dr. Coughman sits back down on his chair and continued on the conversation...

"You must be angry thinking about it, aren't you? It's okay if you get angry, just don't go breaking anything here in my office. But if you are angry, how much angry are you? Enough to hurt or enough to kill? Only one way to find out, by taking this exercise. There are pictures of your family, friends, teachers and principal laying on the table. Place the people you want to hurt on the left side of the table and the ones you want to kill on the right side."

**Victims:**

**D.W.**

**Jane Read**

**David Read**

**Francine**

**Buster**

**Binky**

**Molly**

**Henry**

**Rattles**

**Slink**

**Prunella**

**Ladonna**

**George**

**Muffy**

**Brain**

**Fern**

**Miss. Smith**

**Mr. Black**

**Dr. Goldberg**

**Mrs. Douglas**

**Mrs. Hopper**

**Chief Turner**

_Arthur will leave it all blank in this session..._

"You're leaving it empty?" Asked Dr. Coughman.

Arthur nodded yes.

"That's okay, i understand. Understand that violence is never the answer, it wouldn't even take away the guilt, the pain and suffering you brought on yourself. Come on, now. You held on to that anger for a long time. Let's take a deep and..release it all.

**To Be Continued... Up Next: Chapter 7...**


End file.
